Hybrid card

ABSTRACT

A card like object comprises a card body comprising a first face. The first face is at least partially graphically personalized. An antenna is embedded in the card body. The card body is provided with a cavity. The cavity comprises a contact chip. The cavity further comprises a contactless chip, the contactless chip being electrically connected to the antenna with connecting means.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns hybrid cards. “Hybrid cards” stands here forcards including a chip with its ISO 7816 contact interface and a secondchip with its ISO 14443 contactless interface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Generally hybrid cards are graphically personalized on their surface bymeans of, for example, dye thermal transfer printers. As illustrated inFIG. 1, conventional hybrid cards comprise a contactless chip and acontact chip.

The contactless chip (1) is connected to an antenna (2), either directlyby means of the flip-chip technology, or indirectly if it is encapsuledinto a module that is connected to the antenna by means of eitherwelding, brazing or conductive adhesive based technologies. The antennais a set of loops that may be either constituted of wound wires, eitherprinted by way of additive or subtractive processes. The antenna and thecontactless chip or contactless module are embedded in the card body(3).

The contact chip is connected to contact areas located as defined in theISO 7816 standard. This chip is most generally encapsuled in a module(4).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to both allow reducing of the costs and toobtain hybrid cards with an enhanced quality.

According to one aspect of the invention, a card like object comprisinga card body comprising a first face, the first face being at leastpartially graphically personalized, an antenna being embedded in thecard body, the card body being provided with a cavity, the cavitycomprising a contact chip, is characterized in that the cavity furthercomprises a contactless chip, the contactless chip being electricallyconnected to the antenna with connecting means.

Conventional hybrid card manufacturing technologies do not fully complywith dye thermal transfer printing process due to the surface unevennessdefect induced by the contactless chip or contactless module located inthe thickness of the card body.

As a matter of fact, the difference between the coefficients of thermalexpansion of the chip or the module and the plastic materials composingthe card body causes a local non-homogeneity of the shrinkage thatappears during the cooling step of the lamination process. As shown inFIG. 2, this non-homogeneity is itself responsible for a localunevenness defect (5) at the surface of the card. This surface defectcauses a fading of the dye transfer printed colors.

Thanks to the invention, the contactless chip is not placed within thethickness of the cardbody. Only one cavity needs to be created in thecardbody. The manufacturing process is thus easier. In addition, thecard body has less local non-homogeneity on its surface. The hybridcards can therefore be graphically personalized with an enhanced qualityusing, for example, a dye thermal transfer printing process.

Finally the hybrid card according to the invention allows both reducingof the costs and obtaining hybrids cards with an enhanced quality.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional hybrid card;

FIG. 2 illustrates local non-homogeneities in a conventional hybridcard;

FIG. 3 illustrates a first embodiment according to the invention; and

FIG. 4 illustrates a second embodiment according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As illustrated in FIG. 3, a contact chip (6) is connected to the ISO7816 contact areas (11) of a module (0) by means of bonded wires. Acontactless chip (7) is stacked upon the contact chip (6) and isconnected to conducting tracks (8) at the backside of the module (0) bymeans of bonded wires. The conductive tracks (8) are connected toantenna contact areas (10) by means of conducting adhesive filled holes(10).

In an other embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the contact chip (6)is connected to the ISO 7816 contact areas of the module by means ofbonded wires. Contactless chips (7) and (7 bis) are placed side-by-sidewith the contact chip (6) and are connected to the conducting tracks (8)at the backside of the module by means of bonded wires. The conductingtracks (8) are connected to antennas contact areas (10) by means ofconductive adhesive filled holes (9).

The description hereinbefore describes a card like object comprising acard body comprising a first face, the first face being at leastpartially graphically personalized, an antenna being embedded in thecard body, the card body being provided with a cavity, the cavitycomprising a contact chip, wherein the cavity further comprises acontactless chip, the contactless chip being electrically connected tothe antenna with connecting means.

The contact chip and the contactless chip can be stacked. But they canalso be in a side-by-side configuration.

The connecting means can be bonding wires, conducting track, aconducting adhesive, a liquid, or/and any other means or combination ofthese means.

The card body is made, for example, of plastic material in particularPET, PC, PVC or any other well-known material.

1. A card like object comprising a card body comprising a first face,the first face being at least partially graphically personalized, anantenna being embedded in the card body, the card body being providedwith a cavity, the cavity comprising a contact chip, wherein the cavityfurther comprises a contactless chip, the contactless chip beingelectrically connected to the antenna with connecting means.
 2. A cardlike object according to claim 1, wherein the connecting means is aconductive track.
 3. A card like object according to claim 1, whereinthe connecting means is a conductive adhesive.
 4. A card like objectaccording to claim 1, wherein the connecting means is a metallic wire.5. A card like object according to claim 1, wherein the connecting meansis a liquid.
 6. A card like object according to claim 1, wherein thecontact chip and the contactless chip are in a stacked configuration. 7.A card like object according to claim 1, wherein the contact chip andthe contactless chip are in a side-by-side configuration.